Our Lady Of The Lake

OLL Welcomes New Members on their RCIA Journey

Music Ministry is an important part of Our Lady of the Lake, and this year this talented group will be sharing their gifts in a special way, with their first-ever recording of Christmas classics. Sparked by Music Minister Melissa Gali-Bird, the CD project has been underway for months, and includes the voices and instruments of a wide range of parishioners, young and old. It has been a wonderful experience for these talented musicians to work on a professional recording, and we look forward to celebrating the season with song when they share their gifts with the community.  The CD will be available in time for the Christmas season, and affordably priced to make a perfect gift for the music lovers in your life. To learn more about this CD project, and about Music Ministry at Our Lady of the Lake, visit www.OLLEuclid.org.

What better way to celebrate the holidays than with this creative parish production of the popular Disney hit, Elf Jr. It’s a show the whole family will enjoy. Last year’s OLL Parish Theater production drew record crowds, so you won’t want to miss this one.

Our Lady of the Lake School’s STEM Showcase was a great success. Crowds of visitors, families and students came through to see research and demonstrations on the theme of Vital and Sustainable Communities. Real-world and applied learning helps OLL students become proficient problem-solvers, and integrate their classroom experience with applicable skills in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. At OLL School, students study STEM subjects at every grade level, and incorporate technology in every classroom. Strong STEM programs are one of the ways Our Lady of the Lake School helps to prepare the leaders of tomorrow.

Rita Testa has been the driving force and provided loving guidance to Our Lady of the Lake’s Youth Ministry Program since 2004. Over the years, she’s helped hundreds of young people find new connections with their faith through retreats, service projects, community outreach, welcoming and hospitality – and, of course, good old-fashioned fun. In return, she’s been rewarded with rich relationships that have grown as her students have grown. She’s seen many teens through high school and college, and enjoyed watching them grow into the young adults of Our Lady of the Lake Parish.

Join us for our Backpack Blessing on Sunday, August 19, at 10:00am. Students are invited to bring their school book bags.

Our Lady of the Lake School looks forward to welcoming our students back to school on August 23. Our new leadership team has been working hard all summer planning planning to make the 2018-2019 school year a great one for all our students. To get information about Our Lady of the Lake School and its programs, please call (216) 486-0850.

This September, Our Lady of the Lake is offering JustFaith Ministries' 8-week program, Cultivating Nonviolence, Harvesting Peace.  The program is designed for small groups and explores some of the central questions related to nonviolent responses to violence.  It invites participants to formulate a personal response, inspired by Christian beliefs, to the reality of violence.  The sessions provide historical, biblical and theological perspectives and suggest ways to take faithful action in today's world.  All are welcome to attend.  For more information, call 216-486-0850.

Students in Mrs. Rossman's class were excited when they opened Scholastic News Magazine and found a piece written by one of their classmates. Caroline Brown was invited to debate the topic, "Should We Get Rid of the Penny?", and her essay was chosen for national publication. We're always proud to see Our Lady of the Lake students acknowledged for their talents -- congratulations to Caroline for showcasing her research and writing skills.

Students at Our Lady of the Lake have been busy with their new Video Ministry, learning to share good things going on in our community with videos they produce themselves. They call the ministry OLLY Vid -- for Our Lady of the Lake Youth Video -- and they have some great stories to share already. To see some of their latest releases, visit the Our Lady of the Lake Parish Facebook page -- and be sure to watch for more great things from these talented young filmmakers!

Our Lady of the Lake School is committed to education that goes beyond the classroom. In keeping with that philosophy, this year, both 7th and 8th grade students at Our Lady of the Lake School had the opportunity to visit Washington, DC, for several action-packed days, learning about our government and culture. Highlights from the trip included visits to the National Air and Space Museum, the The National Museum of African American History and Culture, the Basilica of the National Shrine, Mount Vernon, the Arlington National Cemetery, many of the national monuments, the national Mall and much more. Students came home with newfound knowledge, great memories and a deeper appreciation for our nation's history. 

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OUR LADY OF THE LAKE SCHOOL – REGISTRATION 2018-2019

Join Us for Easter!

Our Lady of the Lake has been named Organization of the Year by the Euclid Chamber of Commerce, in its annual business awards. “We are excited to celebrate Our Lady of the Lake Parish as a 2017 Award Winner,” said Chamber Director Sheila Gibbons. “Our Lady of the Lake created a new path for small business owners to grow and prosper in our community and we are proud to partner with them.”

On Sunday, February 18, two children from Our Lady of the Lake School, along with their parents and families, traveled to St. John Cathedral for the “Rite of Election of Catechumens.”  This trip followed the “Rite of Sending” at Our Lady of the Lake, where Fr. Joe Fortuna, Pastor, and the entire congregation prayed over and blessed them as they approached this step toward baptism.

Living Stations of the Cross has been a cherished tradition at Our Lady of the Lake for many years. We invite all of our friends and neighbors to join us for this very special experience. All are welcome!

On Friday, February 23 and again on Sunday, February 25, Our Lady of the Lake was blessed to have in our presence Mr. Thomas Awiapo from Ghana.  Mr Awiapo is on a 10-week tour of the United States in support of Catholic Relief Services (CRS), especially the Rice Bowl campaign for Lent, which began at OLL on Ash Wednesday.

Our Lady of the Lake is a welcoming Catholic Community. Come and see!

Three fifth-graders at Our Lady of the Lake School were recently recognized for both their talent and their patriotism. Third Vice Commander Michael Ridenour, from the Catholic War Veterans, presented awards to all participants. The top three students, featured here, received medals, as well as cash prizes.

Our Lady of the Lake School kicked off Catholic Schools Week with a public Open House on January 28. Hundreds of visitors came to see the ways in which a high-quality curriculum and caring, faith-filled environment combine to create a great educational model. Student ambassadors were proud to guide new families through their school, showing off cutting edge technology in the classrooms, a tournament-quality gymnasium, and creative student work on display throughout the building. The PTO, an active and engaged group of parents who support Our Lady of the Lake School with extracurricular programs, fun family activities and resources for the teachers, also made Open House welcoming with free refreshments for all the visitors. And with raffles and a silent auction all taking place, there was lots of energy and enthusiasm. Catholic Schools Week extends through February 3.

Our Lady of the Lake School is known for its strong STEM curriculum, with specialized instruction in Science, Technology, Math and Engineering at every grade level. One way they celebrate STEM learning is with their annual Science Fair, where students have an opportunity to demonstrate their aptitude and ingenuity. Every year the students explore the potential for creative new ways to apply scientific concepts, and the results are remarkable. Strong grounding in STEM learning is helping these students become tomorrow’s leaders.

Congratulations to Our Lady of the Lake students for participating in an Ohio Academic Challenge tournament in Lorain this past fall as well as one in Painsville this December placing several students to compete in the National tournament!  Seventh graders Josie Carpenter-Lewis, Liam Delaney, Christopher Staggs, Rebecca Young, and Mason Adrine along with eighth graders Emme Trickett and Paul Paciorek!  Students gave up time on select Saturdays to compete in several matches against other schools, often in nail-biting rounds, and the questions cover every academic topic you can imagine.  Great work!

Christmas is always a very special season, and this year at Our Lady of the Lake we captured some special memories to help us remember. At every Christmas Mass, Fr. Joe invited parishioners to take out their phones and take a selfie, or snap a picture of others near them in church. Hundreds of smiling people are now captured in a beautiful Christmas Album that we’ll treasure and enjoy sharing with all our parishioners. Thank you to all the “photographers” who helped us create this Christmas keepsake!

Celebrating 90 Years of Catholic Education

The OLL Parish School of Religion (PSR) kicked off the new academic year on September 24, 2017, with the theme of “Living as Missionary Disciples.” This theme follows the lead of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, who have adopted that theme from the words of  Pope Francis in his apostolic letter, Evangelii Gaudium (“Joy of the Gospel”).  Throughout the course of the year, the children will be exploring what this theme means for each of them individually in their life with their families, at school and among their friends, as well as for the faith community of Our Lady of the Lake.

Our Lady of the Lake Parish and School proudly present the Production of Disney’s Aladdin Jr. in conjunction with Shore Cultural Centre

Our Lady of the Lake’s innovative Micro-Lending Program is attracting more supporters. Thanks to a generous gift from the Ohio Federal Catholic Credit Union, the parish will continue its efforts to help people in the community help themselves.

Every year, Ohio Lottery’s Partners in Education program looks for outstanding students to recognize as Academic All Stars. When second-grader Alaya McMillian went above and beyond, organizing a toy drive to benefit a local homeless shelter, her teacher, Ms. Zbiegien, saw All-Star potential. Alaya worked with her teacher, her principal, her school friends and her community – and her persistence and determination really paid off. In the end, the students collected more than 1,000 toys that were given to children experiencing homelessness and hardship. The children had a chance to take put the values they learn into action, and our community is a better place because of them.

Every year, Vacation Bible School at Our Lady of the Lake is a sell-out, and it’s easy to see why. Great sets, fun activities, and of course delicious snacks - it’s a week full of fun experiences. In fact, it’s sometimes hard to tell who’s having a better time – the kids who come to play and learn or the adults and teens who help out. This year, more than 15 teens from VASJ and OLL middle school came to lend a hand and they did a fantastic job. And the students came from as far away as the west side, with one returning family telling Youth Minister Rita Testa that her girls choose OLL VBS over the program available in their own community, so she drives them all the way to Euclid just to be part of it!

Our Lady of the Lake School students have been showing their support for veterans. Each year, the 8th grade students visit Washington, DC, and learn about civic affairs. After visiting several monuments and memorials this year, the eighth graders decided they wanted to take action. They planned a double elimination volleyball tournament, through a program called Volley for Vets. The eighth graders gave their teams names and colors and invited the entire school to cheer them on! The project was a big success, and they raised $280. This money will transfer over to next year’s eighth grade class. They will work with Catholic War Veterans to make care packages for homeless veterans in the Cleveland Area.

Melana Blase, a seventh grade student at Our Lady of the Lake School, has had an impressive year with Power of the Pen, a national program that helps students become powerful writers through coaching and competitions. While the whole team at Our Lady of the Lake has had good success, and competed at the Regional tournament, Melana has really gone above and beyond. Of 101 competitors at Regionals in the seventh grade level, she came in 16th -- with one piece being ranked first in her entire category, scoring above all other seventh grade participants. She succeeded in advancing to represent Our Lady of the Lake at the State tournament in Wooster on May 26, one of 700 students chosen from a field of 7,000 writers state-wide. It's a significant accomplishment in a highly competitive field, and while she didn't bring home the award from State, it made for an impressive finish to a great year.

May is such an important month for our young people who celebrate their First Communion and Confirmation at Our Lady of the Lake. Congratulations to all of you and to your families. We are so glad you are part of our faith community, and look forward to seeing you grow in your faith in the years to come!

Our Lady of the Lake Parish is active in the community in many ways, and one of the benefits we reap is wonderful relationships, sometimes in unexpected places. For many years, Pastoral Minister Dana Heil has had a rewarding relationship with the Euclid Adult Activities Center, which culminated over the past year in the formation of Adam’s Saints Club. Adam knows a lot about saints, and loves to share his knowledge with OLL parishioners – and more recently students. In honor of the two children who saw visions of Our Lady of Fatima, and were recently made saints, Adam made a presentation to Our Lady of the Lake’s third grade classes. Everyone learned a lot – and we continued to grow a wonderful relationship.

It’s time to sign up for Vacation Bible School at OLL! Always one of our most popular programs, VBS often sells out, so be sure to get your registration in as soon as possible. This year’s Makers Fun Factory theme is going to be extra fun, with a full slate of creative activities every day. VBS runs 9:30-noon June 12-16 at Our Lady of the Lake. For more information, contact Rita Testa – Rita@OLLEuclid.org – or call (216) 486-0850.

Our Lady of the Lake School is invested in STEM programs (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math). Not only are these some of the most important fields youth can study to prepare for successful careers – they’re also really fun. So every year, OLL, with support from the Dominion Foundation, offers a full STEM program for every single grade, culminating with STEM week in May, where students can showcase and share their work.

Save the date for June 3 - Our Lady of the Lake will be out and about in the neighborhood, and we're hoping to see you! We'll be hosting our Stroll Festival right here in front of Our Lady of the Lake at Lakeshore and E. 200th St from 10am-2pm as part of our support of the E. 200th Street Stroll. And we'll also have a table at Walk & Roll E185 from 2:00-6:00pm. So the fun lasts all day! It's a great chance to enjoy a day in the neigbhorhood and support our wonderful community. Please join us!

Holy Week is a very special time, and this year’s celebration at Our Lady of the Week was a beautiful opportunity for friends and neighbors to come together in faith community. From parishioners presiding for the first time at Tenebrae services to the washing of the feet on Holy Thursday and the great vigil on Easter Saturday, there were so many moments of grace and sharing. To see more photos and videos, please visit OLLEuclid.org.